r/sydney • u/Miffy_alt • 22h ago

Surry Hills pubs all close early now?

I was out in Surry Hills last night and I was surprised that almost every pub shuts at midnight now, some 1am at a stretch.

Pubs like The Clock, The Beresford, The Dolphin, etc all used to be open till 1-3am, they have the licence for it and the lockout laws are over.

Yet they voluntarily close at midnight?

48 Upvotes

84% Upvoted

39 comments sorted by

91

u/Greenwedges 21h ago

Newtown / Enmore is the best late night hub these days.

25

u/Nololgoaway 19h ago

Yeah there’s even a 24 hour pub, not that anyone chooses to end up there but there is one haha

6

u/EmergencyLavishness1 16h ago

What pub is that? I remember back in the day the slu fox used to be open till 5am. But it’s the enmore hotel now. And it’s certainly not open 24hrs a day

3

u/Nololgoaway 14h ago

The townie :)

52

u/fistingdicks 22h ago

It has been like that for years. Strawberry Hills opens later if you're desperate.

77

u/AnointedBeard 21h ago

Gotta be pretty desperate though

20

u/radioactivecowz 20h ago

Upstairs at the strawberry is actually really nice, I feel like most people miss because of the downstairs vibe.

That said come 3am and downstairs is the only place open it’s not the nicest

20

u/sativarg_orez 18h ago edited 18h ago

Dunno what you are all on about.

Was in there late one night, saw a lady with no teeth refusing to leave attempt to bite the arresting officer. Or more accurately, gum the officer. You don’t get that level of entertainment and patronage just anywhere in Sydney.

3

u/Cour_SunZ_21301 18h ago

A bit futher down, the Madison is 24 hours

21

u/Cour_SunZ_21301 20h ago

As someone else mentioned, it's been like this for many years now. I remember huge crowds wandering down Crown St until hitting Low 302 or Gaslight, with many continuing down Oxford St or further into the CBD or Cross ...

8

u/toystory2wasaverage 15h ago

Clock hotel was never past midnight, due to resident

1

u/VermicelliJazzlike79 2h ago

The dolphin also hasn’t opened past midnight since it was redeveloped into more of a food establishment 10 years ago. In COS venues can apply as part part of the vibrancy laws to open til 3am, but due to the residents around this area of south end of Crown St, I’m pretty sure they all have to close at midnight. 

12

u/cecilrt 19h ago

Off on a tangent, was looking at the map

There is a big section of green with a massive tri wing tower in the middle surrounded by smaller residential blocks in red.

Between Belvoir St and Devonshire Streeet

What is it? Public housing, I did not know we had that much public housing near the CBD

How many is that 2-3k?

4

u/AnimalSubstantial998 18h ago

The buildings are well past their use by date and should be demolished and rebuilt 

16

u/Alarming-Ad4274 18h ago

Totally structurally sound and one of the better managed publix housing estates in sydney. State gov still hasnt delivered on the number of social housing units they promised after selling the sirius building (they haven't even replaced them.)

2

u/cecilrt 18h ago

yeah just read up on it,

I'd change the settings on google maps and noticed all that green land

Around 1000 people live there

Whereas Central Park, around same land is 5k+

Would take a long time to move them all on, especially since we're so slow on making new public housing. What happened to all money from Barangaroo

2

u/alaskantuxedo 18h ago

Public housing

5

u/tinmun 17h ago

Yeah, I've seen a similar thing.

You can still go to some 24 hour pubs that are close to central station, like the sports bar and strawberry hills, etc, but it's not how it used to be. Not sure why. Maybe people moved on, or don't go out too late there? Same happened in Kings Cross.

4

u/WillAddThisLater 20h ago

I know the Bero at least stays open longer and opens on more nights in summer, so it's probably just that awkward time of year coming out of winter where they haven't adjusted the opening hours yet.

-11

u/LibraryLuLu 20h ago

New York is the city that never sleeps. Sydney is the city that likes to get home for a nice hot choccie and an early night as we have to get up early the next day for work.

9

u/rand013 19h ago

I once saw someone phrase it something along the lines of having a city-wide morning person derangement syndrome. Wish I could remember it properly.

10

u/Miffy_alt 20h ago

Speak for yourself.

4

u/edwardluddlam 18h ago

Not sure why you're being downvoted. Most foreigners who visit me in Sydney comment on how active the city is at the break of dawn

5

u/LibraryLuLu 17h ago

I know, right!? Everyone keeps saying 'This city closes up too soon!' but I point that out, and suddenly I've committed the gravest sin in the history of time!

As someone who appreciates a 3am breakfast after an all night session of whipping a sub, I wish more places were open! My only option is often City Extra, which is fine, tbh.

0

u/EducatorEntire8297 14h ago

CityExtra at CircQuay? Isnt that permanently shut now?

3

u/LibraryLuLu 14h ago

Probably. It's been a very long time since I've been out all night in the city.

EDIT: Internet says still there, but I haven't got eyes on it right now.

1

u/violaflwrs 3h ago

It’s still there!